Thai-Cambodian Clashes Forces Evacuations, Claims Lives

(MENAFN) Border fighting between Thailand and Cambodia escalated into its fourth consecutive day Thursday, driving additional residents from conflict zones and raising the death toll to 16.

Cambodia's Senior Minister General Kun Kim reported between 130,000 and 150,000 people are currently taking refuge in temporary facilities, according to media.

Cambodia's Defense Ministry stated Thai forces "continued to attack" border zones and cultural landmarks with "heavy weapons as well as F-16 fighter jets," according to state-run media. The Interior Ministry confirmed 10 Cambodian civilians have perished and approximately 60 sustained injuries since Monday.

Phnom Penh also dispatched correspondence to the UN Security Council on Wednesday alleging Thailand committed "unprovoked, unlawful, and escalating acts of armed aggression."

Dissolving parliament will not disrupt security operations, says Thai premier
The Royal Thai Army has asserted Cambodian forces conducted "continuous attacks along the Thai–Cambodian border since Dec. 7, firing small arms and heavy weapons into Thai territory, including civilian areas and medical facilities," according to Thai media.

Addressing Cambodia's allegations of civilian and heritage-site destruction, the Thai Army stated its intelligence revealed that "Cambodian forces have been placing military positions inside civilian communities, casino buildings, and historic sites, effectively using them as shields," the outlet reported.

Thai Defense Ministry spokesman Surasant Kongsiri announced Wednesday that "over 400,000 people have been evacuated to safe shelters."

Monday's outbreak of violence has additionally claimed six Thai soldiers' lives and displaced more than half a million people across both sides of the frontier, with Bangkok confirming it deployed F-16 jets in airstrikes against Cambodian territory. Cambodian authorities have not released casualty statistics for their military personnel.

Educational institutions in multiple border districts have shuttered operations, with several repurposed as emergency refuge centers.

Responding to conjecture that Thailand might dissolve parliament for premature elections, Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul declared: "No government move to dissolve the House will disrupt national security operations at the Cambodia border," according to the Bangkok Post. Anutin has indicated the lower house could face dissolution before Jan. 31.

Thailand's Permanent Representative to the UN, Cherdchai Chaivaivid, filed letters with the UN secretary-general and the Security Council charging Cambodia with "grave and unprovoked military attacks" on Thai soil, Thai media reported. The correspondence dismissed assertions that Thailand initiated hostilities, characterizing them as "deliberate misinformation intended to distort facts."

Cambodia has withdrawn its athletes from the 33rd Southeast Asian Games 2025 in Thailand, referencing safety considerations, and its authorities are "collecting evidence" for potential proceedings at the International Criminal Court in The Hague "in response to Thailand's armed aggression against Cambodia's sovereignty and territorial integrity."

Both nations have blamed each other for triggering this week's hostilities, which they claim breach the peace agreement executed in October in Kuala Lumpur in the presence of US President Donald Trump and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

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